ARTS + CULTURE
Bits & Pieces
On Sh Our elf !
New Book From a Long-Time CAP Volunteer Offers a Glimpse Into Appalachian Life
T
he uniquely Appalachian characters, places, and events one encounters in Eastern Kentucky have a tendency to blur the lines between fact and fiction. The gift of storytelling is democratically bestowed upon all Appalachians and poetic turns of phrase are standard in the rhythms of day-to-day linguistics. Colloquialisms roll off of Appalachian tongues thick like gravy, with the weight of complex familial ties and community loyalties informing a shared vocabulary. Words seldom represent their corresponding definitions, except when they absolutely do. This is the splendor reflected in Phyllis Tilly Skocypiec’s book, Appalachian Bits & Pieces – a blurring of the literal with the figurative in the pursuit of describing mountain life to the uninitiated.
Skocypiec’s Bits & Pieces weaves together the stories of disparate characters, real and imagined, to paint a tapestry of Appalachian life. These poignant vignettes piece together to form a mosaic that illuminates not only the realities of those growing up in the mountains, but also the lingering psyche that transcends the particulars of any specific story. From the tale of young love that spans a lifetime to the account of a boy trying to provide for his mother and sisters, the “pieces” of Skocypiec’s book utilize fiction to point to truths deeper than their surface narratives. The majority of the book’s stories are set in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. That these anecdotes exist in a past so far removed is a testament to the abiding nature of Appalachian culture, because without the few minor cues speckled throughout the stories, one could assume these characters and scenarios are contemporaneous. Skocypiec’s gift for creating fully34
THE MOUNTAIN SPIRIT | SPRING/SUMMER 2016
formed characters within just a few lines draws the reader into their distinctly Appalachian existences in a disarmingly universal manner.
The “pieces” of Skocypiec’s book utilize fiction to point to truths deeper than their surface narratives. There is a gothic tilt to these tales. These characters are very aware of their Appalachian setting and feel deep down in their bones the claustrophobic limitations of what is and is not possible. This matter-of-fact attitude toward the realities of life in the mountains never strips these characters of the longings and desires that drive their thoughts and underscore their interactions. When one character meditates on the death of a sibling, he does so in a manner that at once gleefully and humorously dances around mortality and also soberly walks straight through the center of the topic. The last section of the book is devoted to the true stories of Skocypiec’s experiences as a volunteer and donor of Christian Appalachian Project. The nonfiction foundation of these tales doesn’t diminish the enchanting style that galvanizes the whole book; it simply grounds these stories in a definitive time and place. One particularly tender narrative describes, in dogs-eye-view, the introduction to Phyllis and her
